The much-rumored Android Wear support for iOS is now a reality, as Google has announced the release of their Android Wear app for the iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6, or 6 Plus running iOS 8.2+.
Android Wear for iOS is rolling out today. Just pair your iPhone (iPhone 5, 5c, 5s, 6, or 6 Plus running iOS 8.2+) with an Android Wear watch to bring simple and helpful information right to your wrist:
- Get your info at a glance: Check important info like phone calls, messages, and notifications from your favorite apps. Android Wear features always-on displays, so you’ll never have to move your wrist to wake up your watch.
- Follow your fitness: Set fitness goals, and get daily and weekly views of your progress. Your watch automatically tracks walking and running, and even measures your heart rate.
- Save time with smart help: Receive timely tips like when to leave for appointments, current traffic info, and flight status. Just say “Ok Google” to ask questions like “Is it going to rain in London tomorrow?” or create to-dos with “Remind me to pack an umbrella.”
The app is only compatible with one Android Wear watch at the moment, the the LG Watch Urbane. All future Android Wear watches, including those from Huawei, Asus, and Motorola will also support iOS in the near future.
The Verge notes an Android Wear watch paired with an iPhone doesn’t offer as many features as an Apple Watch does, nor as many as an Android Wear watch does when paired with an Android device. Features that do work include:
- Your notifications from the iPhone are mirrored on Android Wear.
- You get Google Now cards on the watch.
- There are a bunch of different watch faces — including select third-party watch faces — that you can install and use.
- There are a few native apps on the watch you can tap into, like Weather or a clever Translate app.
- Voice search works, including various reminders that you might want to send to Google Now.
- You can do fitness tracking on the watch with Google Fit.
- You can get rich notifications from a small set of Google apps, such as Calendar and Gmail.
The Verge article includes an extensive hands-on with the app and the watch, and makes for recommended reading.
The Android Wear for iOS is now beginning to show up in the App Store. Interested parties can download it here.
